Jewish Pre
SERVING NEBRASKA AND WESTERN IOWA FOR NEARLY 80 YEARS Vol. LXXK
No. 39 Omaha, NE
June 9,2000
6 Sivan, 5760
Federation honors volunteers by Pam Monsky, Federation Communications Director
The Jewish Federation and its Centers of Excellence will honor 10 men and women as Volunteers of the Year at the Annual Meeting, Mon• day, June 26, 7p.m., in the Jewish Community Center Theater. The meeting is chaired by Sandy and Paul Epstein and features a new campaign video; a reception will follow. In addition to the awards presented to the Volunteers of the Year, the winner of the Teen Leadership and Young Leadership Awards will be recognized, along with the Humanitarian of the Year, the Foundation's Endowment Award, and the Community Service Award. Installation of officers and board members will also take place: (Continued on page 5)
Susie Norton
Omaha cantors to sing in unison
Oliver Pollak
Merrian Spiegal
Frances Gottlieb
Jeff Kirshenbaum
Marina Tsed
Nancy Wolf
Young Jewish Americans touch lives of refugees by Sharon Goldin
A group of young Jewish adults took time out by Iris Ricks from their two-week Liynqt U'Lehibanot hiking, For the past three years, our community has enjoyed an annual concert featuring three Omaha studying and community service program in order cantors. This year, all four cantors will join togeth- to provide comfort to the children of Lebanese er in a celebration of Jewish music, Sunday, June refugees. The staff of Livnot U'Lehibanot heard that 25,7 p.m., at Temple Israel. • refugees from the South Lebanese Army (SLA) had The program will feature solos, trios and duets by Beth El's Cantor Emil Berkovits and Hazzan G. temporarily moved into the local hotels in Tzfat. Michael Horwitz, and Temple's Cantor Jennifer They offered the Livnot participants an opportuniBlum, along with songs and stories from Beth ty to make the plight of the children a little easier. Two thirds of the group responded instantly and Israel's Cantor Emeritus Leo Fettman. made their way over to two of the hotels where (Continued on page 2) most of the Lebanese children were congregated. The children's parents were most appreciative of the welcome distraction for their families The children, aged four to young adults, eagerly joined in the activities that were offered them by the Livnot participants. "I took a group of five kids and we painted and played tic-tac-toe," said Chad Krisel, 21, of Weston, FL. "We didn't speak Arabic and they didn't speak English, other than one child who spoke a broken English and translated for the group. I could not imagine being in their shoes; they didn't have time to bring anything with them when they left Lebanon." Cantor Blum Andrew Zellman, 21, of Elmhurst, IL, said, "I felt like we made a difference in peoples' lives. Two hours from my day made those kids happier. I colored and played ball with them. It was hard saying goodbye, we got so close to them despite the language barrier." "When I heard that there were Lebanese children in Tzfat, I had no desire to go, but I made myself," said Benji Blum, 23, of Columbia, MD. "It was one of the most impressive experiences and it was an opportunity of a lifetime to work with refugees who only had the clothes off their back. We lit up their day and the atmosphere was so different while we were there." . Cantor Berkovits Hazzan Horwitz The Livnot U'Lehibanot participants earlier on in
their program had raised several hundred dollars for charity during a fun charity auction event. The group unanimously voted to donate the money towards helping the plight of the SLA refugees. Livnot U'Lehibanot, a program based in Jerusalem and Tzfat for 21-30 year olds with minimal background in Judaism runs two-, three- and six-week programs throughout the year. The programs are multifaceted involving an exploration of Judaism, challenging hikes, and community service. For further information about the Livnot programs, visit the website at www.livnot.org.il or call: 1-888-LIVNOT-O.
Andrew Zellman was one of many volunteers who took time off Livnot to provide programs for the children of Lebanese refugees who fled to Israel.